A Review of PANIC IN NAKAYOSHI WORLD: Sailor Moon Meets Lolo!
=3 Forever…
Year: 1994 // System: Super Famicom // Publisher: Bandai // Developer: Tom Create // Genre: Action // Atmosphere: Anime
>>> Man, what’s with these top-down, single-panel, button-mashing, chibi-toting, anime-styled Bomberman/Adventures of Lolo clones that were exclusive for the Super Famicom in Japan? They’re all so cutesy, yet the only thing you do in any of these games is smash objects and clobber cuddly creatures!
These, along with the bunnies, are some of the enemies you have to brutally decimate. I mean, COME ON!
But unlike the other two of this style that I’ve so far snatched up and rolled through with controller hand- those two games being Coron Land and Otoboke Ninja Colosseum- this one has a bit of charm. It’s not a standout title and certainly not one in which I’d invest my spare time (even though I have none), BUTPanic in Nakayoshi World,starring the iconic Sailor Moon, offers a good time. It’s adorable, hilarious, fast-paced, visually gripping, and neat for giving you four of the Nakayoshi-print manga’s star heroines and their sidekicks to choose from…even if they’re all at the core the exact same character…
YEAH! Save that princess like the hero…er, heroine that you are!
Unlike Coron Land and Otoboke, Panic is totally bearable in single player mode. As one of the four vixens and, possibly, their buddy if a second controller is in use, the player guides a frightened citizen through a maze of “dangerous” monsters who only wish to destroy Nakayoshi world and eat all of its people. In each level, you wreck enemies, blast blocks to bits, power up your projectile beam, and protect the daylights out of your partner. Destroy enough property and bad guys and you unlock the door taking you to the next level. Each stage consists of six sections, with a fifth section acting as a “bonus” maze where you carve paths in the floor with your blaster and collect as many stars as possible. The sixth stage hurtles a fast-moving, hard-hitting, zany boss at you, but time a quick chain of rapid fire and they’ll go down just as quickly as they appeared.
With four difficulty settings and four unbearably adorable female heroes (I always fell for the “cute” over the “sexy”…no clue why…) who must each be played just for their “awwwwwwww”-nimations, you have a fairly replayable action title in Panic.
That’s a lot of cute…
Controls definitely factor into its smooth nature with high responsiveness and a simple scheme that gives the player no trouble when he or she is massacring kittens and rabbits- I MEAN- a bunch of terrible man-eating villains!
But in spite of how cute and colorful this rapid-firing adrenaline pumper in its overall style, Nakayoshi’s crossover title does experience its fair share of shortcomings. Although this isn’t a bad game, it’s rather one-note. Although your character has access to a nice range of power-ups that makes her shots bigger, and she must protect her partner while shredding through the competition, there’s not a lot of variety. All of the weapons are the same. Each of the eight playable characters plays the same. Each stage copies the exact same format that the other has and replicates certain scenarios, such as the bonus *-5 stages and the quick-moving bosses that all die in less than ten hits.
Stage variety picks up through its use of obstacles in latter worlds that do more complicated things such as drop you onto a tile that’s on the other side of the stage. But in the end, the goal is the same: blow up enough baddies and lead your partner to the door that opens up as a result.
But even when the game play grows stale, the spirit picks up and gives you a reason to keep going. In reaching the Japanese schoolhouse world, you go from saving a beautiful princess and a lad lost in the forest to escorting…a fat, bug-eyed fish. And it’s just….hilarious to look at! I’d say I’ve died more-so from being distracted by that big, adorable fish face than from not figuring out how to take down the enemy.
With all the difficulties considered, this is a pretty easy play-through overall. Just keep your distance, protect your escort, and shoot things. And don’t worry, your projectiles block most of the enemy’s shots. Plus, whenever you lose all three lives, you get the chance to restart from the last stage you visited as opposed to doing it all over again. So Panic is pretty fair if not a little too breezy and simple. But I will say this: for those wondering what type of game would work best for both genders evenly,Panicdefinitely serves as an answer. If you’re looking for a fun and cute game to play with your boyfriend or girlfriend, then this is a fun choice. Nothing says overabundance of anime and cuddles quite like an envoy of chibi girls with Texas-sized smiles that would make many a Dirty Harry melt into a puddle.
CHIC Factor
Challenge: 6/10: Levels are repetitive and enemy styles don’t change or become harder to engage. The difficulty stays level, giving the player a relatively easy playthrough. But killing enemies is fun, and navigating your way through the maze-like panels while shielding your buddy from enemy fire barely manages keeps your noggin busy enough so that you don’t zone out and finish the game on muscle memory and a comatose brain.
Handling: 7/10: Control scheme is extremely basic, but movement mechanics are highly responsive and very fluid. If I messed up, it’s because I messed up, and not because the D-pad didn’t work on cue.
Innovation: 5/10: It’s been done before. The fact that it’s an accessible copycat of The Adventures of Lolo and a smoother-operating Coron Land is innovation enough for me.
Core Experience: 9/10: There’s so much charm in this title it’s DANGEROUS! The animations are wonderfully drawn and highly spirited, the enemies are, once again, proof that some creators have a twisted sense of humor (why is it that you only kill cute, fuzzy animals in cute games), and the level designs, albeit repetitive, are popping with well-themed objects and gorgeous backdrops. I especially love how if you don’t rescue your partner from the get-go, they’ll start tapping their feet impatiently and looking at you like “Are you dense? Do you NOT see me?!” Character. Panic has it.
OVERALL: 6.8/Decent: Not a great game, and not one you’d play when looking for the most enjoyable SNES and SFC games. But if you’re looking for any D’AWWWW moments or a stress free two-player adventure with that significant other or friend of yours who likes adorable things, then Panic in Nakayoshi World is your game. It is an exclusive for the Super Famicom, but has been translated into English and can easily be tracked down through the wonderful world wide web.
About the Author
Nichomaxwell Nichomaxwell is a reporter for the Northern Neck News in Warsaw, Virginia. When he's not writing newspaper articles, he's driving around in his unreliable SUV to see people or playing a new or old videogame. Although once the "review machine" on the site, NM has shifted his interests to feature stories, "did-you-know's" and editorials for TG.TV.
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